Are You Sure?

“You want me to kill you…?” The stranger asked, confused.

“No, let me leave with you.” Ashur clarified.

“Ashur, no!” Dalun said in shock.

Ashur tried to explain himself, “Father, I want to…”

“Miss, please give me a moment to discuss with my son. He doesn’t know what he is saying!” Dalun frantically said and quickly pulled Ashur out of the Training Hall.

“Ashur, what the hell are you thinking? Are you trying to play the hero at a time like this? If you go with her, she definitely won’t treat you kindly!” Dalun told his son sternly.

“Let’s see what your mother will say about this.” He grabbed Ashur and teleported both of them back to their house.

“Linny, your son wants to go off with the stranger to become her servant. How ridiculous! Quickly, tell him how outrageous that notion is!” Dalun briefly explained the situation to Linny.

But before she could say anything, Ashur interrupted them. “Father, Mother, isn’t this what you wanted for me? To go to a foreign land and learn a different cultivation style? This is the perfect opportunity! I have the chance to learn from this powerful woman!”

Ashur said with conviction, “I will come back and make you proud!”

“Ashur, when we wanted you to leave, we wanted you to train and become a strong Warrior, not become a servant to some stranger! How can you, the son of the Hon Clan Leader, assume such a lowly position!” Dalun argued in protest.

Linny reached out and touched his face in concern. She said kindly, “Ashur, the life of a servant is really tough. I don’t want you to have to suffer through that.”

“Father, Mother, didn’t you always teach me that one must persevere through difficulty to become a stronger person? I am strong, and won’t give up easily. Please let me do this.” Ashur tried to persuade them.

At this moment, a young, petite girl ran over, tears streaming down her cheeks.

“Acantha! What are you doing here?” Ashur remarked in surprise. Acantha was his childhood sweetheart and long time friend, and he hadn’t expected to see her now.

He had always had a crush on her but never had the courage to confess his feelings to her. So they had always just remained friends.

“Ashur, I heard you wanted to leave this place. Why do you want to leave?” Acantha’s asked, her pretty face twisted in worry. “You might die! I might never see you again!”

Seeing Acantha’s concern for him, a strange emotion tugged at his heartstrings, and he was almost tempted to stay. But he was determined about his choice and resolutely shook his head. “Acantha, this is something that I must do.”

He leaned in closer to her and said, “If I stay here, I have no chance at a better future. At least somewhere else, I still have hope.” He smiled ruefully. “Acantha, I need a favor from you. When I’m not around, please help me take care of my parents.”

Acantha wiped the tears off her cheeks and sighed. She knew how stubborn he could be, and she couldn’t sway him once his mind was made up. “Stay safe then, Ashur.” She said as she bid him goodbye.

“I will.” Ashur promised. He turned to Linny and said softly, “Mother, I’m sure I want to do this. Please don’t worry about me.”

“Ashur, if that is really what you want, then take my blessing and go. But don’t forget about us.” Linny said in a resigned voice.

Dalun didn’t say anything, but Ashur knew that he was in agreement as well.

“Mother, don’t worry, I will never forget about you.” Ashur assured her. “Goodbye.”

With that, Dalun and Ashur returned back to the Training Hall.

“So, what’s the outcome?” Tapping her feet, the woman asked impatiently.

“He will leave with you,” Dalun told the stranger.

“Boy, don’t expect the work to be easy. A servant’s life is incredibly tough and tiring. Especially where I come from, servants are expected to do all of the chores for their masters.” She warned him.

Ashur nodded in agreement. Anything was better than staying here, being a disgrace to his family, and doomed to a life of manual labor.

The stranger continued on, “But, you will also have the opportunity to learn the unique cultivation style of my realm if you show any talent for it.”

Ashur’s heart leaped. This was the opportunity that he had been hoping for!

“But before we leave, let me test your skill level first.” The stranger said to Ashur. “I don’t just take anybody under my wing.”

Hearing this, his expression suddenly became downcast. He looked at the ground shamefully and muttered, “My Cultivation Level is only Level 5.”

A slightly warm expression broke through the stranger’s cold mask. “Boy, that is only for the Hon Cultivation Style. That won’t matter in my realm. What I want to test is your fundamental skills.”

“Oh. Alright then.” Ashur shrugged and said. “What do you want me to do?”

“Spar with me.” The stranger said with a smile.

Ashur started to panic. After all, he had just witnessed how powerful and ruthless the woman could be when fighting.

Seeing his expression, she laughed and clarified, “Don’t worry, it’s a friendly sparring session. Go ahead and attack.”

Not completely convinced, Ashur tentatively summoned a few small darts and threw them towards the stranger.

Without even batting an eyelid, the stranger simply raised a hand to shield herself.

“I’m sure you can try harder than that,” she remarked softly.

Ashur’s face was completely white with fear, but he gritted his teeth and nodded with slightly more conviction.

He created a large ball of energy, then muttered slightly and cast a short spell, splitting the ball into three. The three balls started glowing and spinning in a circle.

All of a sudden, the three spinning balls flew towards the woman and attacked her.

With brilliant reflexes, she sidestepped and dodged the attack.

Following this, the stranger summoned a sword and raised it toward Ashur, seemingly enraged.

Ashur trembled in fear but also summoned a sword of his own in order to fend for himself.

Though he was no expert, he spent a lot of time training with the sword and parried off the initial strokes with ease.

Yet the woman didn’t seem to tire and kept attacking faster and faster, moving until her sword was almost a blur. This woman wasn’t just good, she was an expert.

Ashur was simply no match for her.

In one swift motion, she flicked her sword and knocked Ashur’s sword to the ground, disarming him.

As he scrambled to retrieve his sword, he found the sharp edge of the sword against his neck and froze.

For a moment, Ashur thought that he was about to die.

But the stranger smoothly removed the sword from his neck and made it disappear into thin air.

She looked at Ashur and nodded, “Not bad, boy. You can control energy well, and have the potential to learn more. Additionally, you have a very creative way of fighting. Perhaps weaponry isn’t the best style of cultivation for you.

More importantly, I like how you still chose to fight even though you are fearful. That takes a lot of courage.

I will let you come with me.”

Ashur let out a sigh of relief. He seemed to have passed whatever test she was setting. Now, he could leave to a foreign land and start a new life.

Just before he left with the stranger, Dalun walked over to Ashur to bid him farewell. Ashur sighed internally, expecting a long nagging speech, or yet another scolding.

But Dalun leaned in and just whispered four words into his ear.

“Make me proud, son.”